In November 2006, Schneider led 15 friends from downtown Los Angeles to the ocean on a daylong, 15.8-mile trek along Wilshire Boulevard, which he calls “the spine of Los Angeles.”

By last year, The Great Los Angeles Walk, which traverses a different boulevard each year, had ballooned to 300 people and included food trucks, local luminaries as guest speakers, historical context from the LA Conservancy and an after-party in Santa Monica.

Held on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, Schneider’s yearly excursions familiarize locals with urban beauty and obscure landmarks such as Ray Charles’ recording studio, encouraging ambulatory exercise in a notoriously car-heavy city.

He tweets his location every mile or so to keep the group together, charges no entry fee and solicits advice from L.A. experts like former L.A. Weekly food writer Jonathan Gold and L.A. Observed’s Kevin Roderick. What better way to prepare yourself for a month of holiday eating!